A new rumor recently popped up saying that Mad Max: Fury Road director George Millerwas in talks to take over the Man of Steel franchise from Zack Snyder. But considering the movie isn’t officially on Warner Bros. Pictures’ schedule for their DC Comics cinematic universe, it didn’t sound like it was an immediate concern for the studio.

Now another rumor seems to confirm a lack of urgency to get Man of Steel 2 off the ground as the project is reportedly on “permanent hold.” But what does that even mean?

Den of Geek has this latest rumor on Man of Steel 2 on hold, and while they also echo the story of George Miller being in talks with Warner Bros., they actually say their discussions have been about which forthcoming comic book property for him to take on.

However, Miller won’t exactly be given free reign, as the studio would need to agree with his vision and scheduling would need to be worked out. So it seems like the studio is in very early talks with Miller about doing another movie for them, and there’s no guarantee that it will be Man of Steel 2.

As far as the “permanent hold” description is concerned, no one is entirely sure what that means. Are they holding off on another Superman movie until they get the rest of the DC Comics cinematic universe off the ground? Are they maybe wanting to get this rumored Batman trilogy with Ben Affleck in action first? It’s hard to say, but no matter what the situation is, Man of Steel 2 clearly isn’t a priority.

Part of me wonders if Warner Bros. is thinking that making a standalone Superman movie isn’t as easy as making him part of everyone else’s stories. He’s been the most difficult comic book character to reboot properly so far, and while it was a solid enough start to kick off a whole plan for DC Comics on the big screen, if they feel like they don’t need more solo Superman adventures anytime soon, then why rush it?

At the same time, if George Miller really does end up directing Man of Steel 2, then I would want to see that movie as soon as possible. Then again, whatever DC Comics property ends up getting Miller behind the camera would have my full attention for sure. It’s still early days for Miller and Warner Bros. continuing their relationship, and hopefully the director will make a Mad Max: Fury Road sequel part of his deal at the studio too.

Is there a different DC Comics property you’d like George Miller to direct?